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journal of AND URBANISM ISSN 2029–7955 / eISSN 2029–7947

2017 Volume 41(1): 9–21 doi: 10.3846/20297955.2017.1296793

THE STRUCTURE OF SPACE: AND . FIGURES AND ICONS IN JOSEF GOČÁR’S WORK

Domenico Giuseppe CHIZZONITI

Politecnico di Milano, ABC, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, Milano, 20133 Italy E-mail: [email protected]

Received 24 November 2015; accepted 11 December 2016

Abstract. This research paper relates to a number of works by Josef Gočár, a Bohemian architect who was active in a time period between “Cubist” vanguardism and “Rationalist” modernism. The theme regards the search for a general method which evaluates the key elements of the structure of space in architectural design. The main asset of architectural composition has traditionally been the close association between the syntactic order of the elements and a semantic perception of space. The aim of this essay is to explore the relation between the role of the experimental design regarding the multiple and changeable architectural experience and the creative process of architectural work. The methodological experience hereby demonstrated refers to a specific case study that belongs to the scientific research carried out by Gočár and his researchers’ group at the Fine Arts Academy (AVU). His work is hereby re-interpreted in an effort to explore the experiential contribution to the architectural design discipline, and the figurative aspect, by reexamining various cha- racteristics of his practical experience as an architect involved in the civic priorities of , from the scale of urban settlement to the individual design work. Keywords: modernism, functionalism, spirit of the place, vanguard, character of space, Czech cubism, structure of form.

Introduction Following the identification of the primary sources it The investigation had an important role in order to is necessary to proceed with two-dimensional drawing acquire further information, and it is considered a reconstruction of the design according to the tradi- basic instrument of knowledge of the structure that tional representation of the architectural project: plans, subtends compositional procedures adopted by Josef sections, elevations. Second step: after re-drawing, a Gočár. The graphic processes are used as tools for con- work of interpretation based on the proportioning of ception, verification, evaluation and communication the elements that compose the project is developed. of the individual project components and the architec- The resulting schemes are geometric reconstructions tural space (Lukeš et al. 2010). checking the correct reproduction and also the critical This procedure makes it possible to trace the ori- reading of the architectural work. This allows us to go ginal intuition underlying architectural work, where back over the process used by the architect in the con- the ideation is translated into clear typological choices. ceiving design project, from the idea to the concept. Form and construction are summarized symbolically Third step: after finishing the two-dimensional draw- in a form of language closer to the formulation of the ings we proceed to three-dimensional reconstruction of architectural idea. The investigative method plays the the project, through conventional graphics programs, role of a knowledge instrument that verifies the struc- focusing on an overall reading of the architectural ture that subtends compositional procedures. There are form. Fourth step: the combination of three signific- many we followed in this investigation. The first ant bi-dimensional drawings (a plan, a section and a step consists of selecting the architecture by principles facade) with the exploded axonometric view derived that follow the main aim of the research, through the from the three-dimensional reconstruction and drawn analysis based on the study of plans and drawings. using main construction lines. This procedure makes

Copyright © 2017 Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (VGTU) Press 9 http://www.tandfonline.com/ttpa 10 D. G. Chizzoniti. The structure of space: cubism and modernism. Figures and icons in Josef Gočár’s work

Fig. 1. J. Gočár, Villa Glücklich in the Baba district, 1933 – Czech Pavilion at the Paris International Exhibition 1936 – Church and Monument to Tomáš Baťa at Zlín, 1940, re-drawing of ground floor and upper floor plans, cross section, longitudinal section, elevations and 3D reconstruction.

it possible to trace the original intuition underlying a receptacle for the promotion and affirmation of new architectural work, where the ideation is translated into talents (Wirth 1930). clear typological choices. Form and construction are An initial issue arises as to the role and contri- summarized symbolically in a form of language closer bution of Gočár to the ferment of the avant-garde to the formulation of the architectural idea (Fig. 1). (Švacha 2000). In order to provide an answer to The research group at Politecnico di Milano1 have this, we must consider the phenomenon of “Czech carried out this study by reconstructing some of Cubism” (Vybíral 2012) and his cultural contribu- Gočár’s key projects which, for the purpose of greater tion to the new approach of the architectural space clarity, have been schematically referred to various (Deinhard 1972; Von Vegesack 1992). stages of his work: an initial “Classical” phase, an in- At the end of the 1890’s, in generally and termediate phase which was more narrowly “Cubist”, Prague in particular, industrial emancipation was a and a final “Rationalist” phase. This division, despite decisive factor alongside the political reawakening being schematic, allowed us to compare a number of being expressed through intellectuals such as Otakar different figurative results (Švacha 1991b), in the belief Hostynsky and Jan Gebauer (Raynaud 1990), together that there were a number of constants cutting across with Tomas Garrigue Masaryk, future president the bulk of his work2. of , and others (Toman 1995). This generation of intellectuals succeeded in opening up The cubist approach to the space Prague’s horizons to contemporary cultural develop- Anticipating the new figurative tendency of cubism ments in European capitals such as Paris, Berlin was the magazine Styl, published from 1908 by the and Moscow (Lamarova 1978). France, in particular, Manes Group. Together with the Old Prague Club, of held a strong attraction in the affirmation of a cul- which a key member was the architect Zdenek Wirth – tural identity alongside a Viennese influence within author of the first monographic collection of Gočár’s the Austro-Hungarian Empire (Benešova 1980). In work, produced as far back as 1930 – the magazine was this mix Franz Kafka introduced the base for escaping Prague’s characteristic individualism with his profana- tion of the of Bohemian nationalist misanthropy, 1 The reconstructions of the works of Josef Gočár were made while Jaroslav Hasek with his sharp sense of sarcasm by the group of researchers the School of Civil Architecture in the Architectural Design Workshop I under Prof. Domenico made fun of the volubility of the conservative middle Chizzoniti, and the Interior Architecture Workshop, under Prof. classes. The lively political atmosphere of the period Marta Averna, coordinated by Letizia Cattani, Benedetta Govi, Matteo Noviello, Luca Preis, Gaia Preta, Patrizia Rosi. The MOA was linked to intense cultural activity, especially in as- Laboratory of Politecnico di Milano also worked on the project. sociation with the manifestos of new programmes for 2 The Prague Technology Museum (Narodní Technické Muzeum) literature, theatre, music and the figurative arts (Švacha has a number of subsidiary archives including the management of several foundations which comprise all the material relating to nu- 1985b; Lukeš 1990). merous architects. The Josef Gočár material was kept in an archive We hereby aim to survey key examples of the genu- by the River Moldava. The flooding of August 2002 caused serious damage to the archive and recovery of the material involved a ine innovation in architectural experimentation and considerable amount of restoration work. All the material relating to provide an area for the comparison of different ar- to Josef Gočár is now kept at the Museum’s main location. Some of the drawings are kept at the Museum of Eastern Bohemia in chitectural experiences (Valena, Winko 2006). In this Hradec Kralové, Muzeumvýchodních Čech v Hradci Kralové. case, the particular scope is the direct investigation of Journal of Architecture and Urbanism, 2017, 41(1): 9–21 11 the materials, such as the original drawings of the pro- essays, in particular on the relationship between the ject, photos and architectural surveys, so as to restore underlying principles of the form structure and those its compositional methods going back to the initial regarding the adoption of a new figurative approach creative impulses. (Eugene 1971). According to Veselý (2005), there is a new possible All the considerations on the sensitivity of space perspective on Czech pre-war architecture. He demon- were made by the mathematician Henri Poincare and strates that few features were strictly shared with cu- transposed by Jaroslav Kabelka (1913). This extension bism in its attempt to approach a universal creativity to “plasticism” (Emmerson et al. 1994) of the architec- such as the other contemporary architectural move- tural space is a new vision, which characterises all of ments in Europe. the first phases of Bohemian Cubism (Lahoda 1992). With specific research methods and tools of ana- According to Yve-Alain Bois (1997), the analysis of this lysis, and taking this idea into consideration, our pur- phenomenon should be carried out not only through a pose is to favour previous work, studies and research formal exploration. “… But what of cubist (that into single cases or groups of projects. Methodologically is, of the cubism of Picasso and Braque)? Did it have any this recognition and reconstruction were carried out effect on architecture? Can we find for it any architectural using traditional items of the architecture material, equivalent? We would be wrong, I believe, to look for this such as plans, sections, and 3D views, but with the at the merely morphological level (the superficial level support of an appropriate critical process around the at which the analogies defining both cubistic and cubic concept of space in order to emphasise the construction architecture operate). It would have to be found, instead, of a modern identity in the Bohemian context (Von at the structural level of cubism’s formation as a semi- Vegesack 1992; Toman 2004). ological system…” (Bois 1997). This is, therefore, reas- Architecture, in particular in the person of Jan onable, but in order to understand the peculiar inter- Kotera, had made a significant contribution to break- pretation that Gočár carried out in his entire career, it ing the conservative mould through the Association is necessary to properly study his idea of space through of Figurative Artists, SVU Manes, and a prestigious a formal and geometrical analysis of his compositions magazine with the emblematic title of VolneSmery (Free (Fig. 2). In other words, we would demonstrate the way Orientations). SVU Manes focussed on the figurative in which Gočár transfers and deciphers the semantic arts in Paris (Murray 1997) organising a series of events structure of cubism after the brief intermezzo around which blended trends within French and the first world war and the possible continuity in his German (Kotalík 1987). This interest architectural production: “…Their forms reject the or- in the avant-garde figurative arts movements encour- thogonal structure system of classical architecture, from aged a diaspora within SVU Manes, with the conver- using oblique lines or crystalline formations with the aim gence of a new generation of scholars into an important to achieve a dramatic expression. Similarly, building on group of artists: the SUV, Skupina Umelcu Vytvarnych the tradition of Gothic architecture, those forms tried to (Group of Figurative Artists), conditioned primarily dematerialise the buildings and emphasise the express- by Parisian Cubists and in particular by Cezanne and ive power of the constructive skeleton…” (Vybíral 2012). later by Picasso and Braque, together with the paral- Rather than penetrating the structure of space in the lel seductive appeal of Apollinaire. A new generation first period Gočár, like several others, proceeds from of and artists joined the group, including the simple surface deformations, such as in the houses in painters Antonin Prochazka, , Josef Capek, Tychanova str. in Prague (1911–1912), moving to the the architects Vlastislav Hoffman, Josef Chochol, Pavel decomposition and cantilevered re-composition of the Janak and of course Josef Gočár (Švacha 1985a). geometric solids in the drawings for the extension to Villa Binko at Krucemburk (1913) – the reason why The new idea of space: cubism and modernism this type of work could not be defined strictly cubist The relationship of Gočár and his colleagues with but perhaps cubistic. Cubism was to be of short duration. From 1910 to A different propensity for Cubist ideas and their 1914 and the outbreak of World War One, Cubism innovative application to architecture was already ap- worked its spiritual impetus through to exhaustion. parent in the plans for the House of the Black Madonna The magazine Umelecky Mesicnik (Art Monthly), in Prague dating 1911–1912. This was a year before the which was very close to Riegl’s belief (Pächt 1963; commission for the Wenke store in Jaromer (Fig. 3), Zerner 1976) in the primacy of the idea over the ma- and in 1911 Gočár started working on the spa pavilion terial (Deinhard 1972), in just three years from 1911 at Bohdanec, a small town between Hradec Kralove to 1913, built up an impressive collection of critical and Pardubice (Panoch 1999). Gočár’s progress in just 12 D. G. Chizzoniti. The structure of space: cubism and modernism. Figures and icons in Josef Gočár’s work

Fig. 2. J. Gočár, Church of Saint Wenceslas in Prague, Vršovice, 1928–1929

one year is impressive, having previously been com- mitted to a figurative language in dialectic with main- stream European architecture, with his opening up to the fervour of Cubism. Such is the intensity of his enthusiasm and commitment to it that in a few years, from 1910 to the outbreak of World War I, all Gočár‘s work focuses on extending the expressive potential of such a significant and absorbing figurative adventure (Švacha 1991a). Having discarded the first thoughts of a conven- tional solution which would have tried to save money by linking up with the existing pavilions, Gočár fixes on a design for an isolated structure, a stand alone pa- vilion set in the midst of the park and detached from any conditioning by the urban surroundings. The ar- chitectural device he opts for is a long gallery on two levels. The way Gočár gives architectural expressive- ness to the facade by means of elements set at different levels generates multiple levels of structural depth. This Fig. 3. J. Gočár, Wenke Department Store in Jaromer, 1910– effect is enhanced by the regular compact division of 1911 free hand drawing of interior elevation by J. Gočár Journal of Architecture and Urbanism, 2017, 41(1): 9–21 13 the facade, an arrangement of prismatic mullions link- ing the portico upper loggia to the ground floor. The decision to highlight the structural framework shows the architect striving for a complex geometry which is able to bring out this prismatic effect of the architec- tural mass, which is itself formally characterised by a mixed-linear section, bare on the line of the facade. The search for depth in the facade is reinforced by a com- plex system of windows, with the shutters shaped so as to a form a cusped surface along the frame, and a divi- sion of the uprights and the cross pieces set obliquely, following a geometrical pattern which highlights the elevation view (Fig. 4). Fig. 5. J. Gočár, Villa Strnad in Prague, 1925–1926 In this case, the idea of composition starts to move from the structure of the form, and the geometrical ity in Gočár – who theorized hardly anything (Švacha effect of the prism, to the composition of the space 2006) on Cubism – contrary to his colleagues Janak and (Fig. 5). This is the reason why one of the most import- Hoffman – in seeking a line of emancipation from the ant examples of this space composition technique is an current culture for Czech architecture. This research architectural pattern that is not linked to the conven- was conducted mainly in those projects which are tional idea of Cubism at formal level, “the superficial more anomalous than the conventional cubist canons level at which the analogies defining both cubistic and (Vybíral 2013). cubic architecture operate”, according to the definition The conception of space for Gočár could be demon- conceived by Y. A. Bois (1997). strated by analysing a significant case around the year Many authors have already expressed several con- 1910: the project for the church in Louny (Fig. 6). The cerns about the reliance on the Parisian influence, building is for a protestant community willing to ac- which produced its limit and perhaps even its fortune cept a new architectural experiment, and Gočár cer- in the international context. We should try to move tainly makes the most of the opportunity. Compared the research, not only on Cubism, from easy genealogy to the Lutheran institution in Hradec Kralove (Kubícek and dependence on the Parisian culture to place it in its 1926), the architectural layout is here more incisively context and analyze it in the tradition of the Bohemian conditioned by basic geometric shapes, the square and culture. For this reason, we tried to explore this ductil- the circumference, which in a variety of combinations

Fig. 4. J. Gočár, Czechoslovak Pavilion at the Paris Fig. 6. J. Gočár, Project for Protestant church in Louny, 1909– International Exhibition 1924–1925 1910, 3D reconstruction 14 D. G. Chizzoniti. The structure of space: cubism and modernism. Figures and icons in Josef Gočár’s work

create the spaces for the various activities. The struc- girder in the shape of a steeply stepped pyramid. This ture of the space is characterized by combining stereo- unprecedented technical feat was meant to be united metric masses as discrete elements with a precise will with the expression of a new style, which several months of expression through the ostentation of its geometrical later led to cubist experiment...” (Švacha 1997). structure. They are not prisms and pyramids but the Yet, the architectural achievement cannot occur intuition of pure Plato’s forms of space that a few years exclusively as a logical combination of elements, in- later (1916) Ozenfant theorizes in a famous article (Fry ferred by theoretical analysis of the program and of 1966). the available technical means, such as the functional The complex is ordered round a central structure, programme, the technological manufacture, the aes- a genuine suspended theatre space, leading off to the thetic choices (Lukeš 1985). Being a transformation semi-circular apse, the bell tower, a square with built- of space, the architectural achievement depends on a in spiral staircase, and a self-contained lower square unifying creation process, in which every component for residential use. The central plan properly places the usually undergoes conversions through the influence church at the upper level. Access is via stairs, which lead of the general context. The designing process cannot worshippers from the lower level into the main hall. be exclusively learned through logical mechanisms, This same route on the lower floor along a corridor is although it is obvious that the analytical methods are where the residential and service areas were located. necessary, but it is empirically assimilated crosswise The main hall, being the fulcrum of the entire project, with practice and training: the main process through has been the subject of a great deal of careful thought which Josef Gočár explores his poetics is the combin- and establishes a relationship between the space for ation between the experimental activity of composing worshippers, rising through tiers towards the altar, and the practice of the construction. This practice an- and the semi-circular apse, similar to the relationship ticipates by several years the dramatic events of the between a theatre stage and auditorium. This principle, First World War, which mark the end of this fascinating a kind of stage-set for worship, is highlighted by the time, apart from a brief isolated period in the in presence of an ambulatory and an adjacent balcony, the unsuccessful attempt to perfect a “national style” giving the impression of sitting in a sort of theatre, the for the new Czechoslovak Republic (Benešova 1996). real “audience for worship”. At this level the ambu- Within this intense cultural context, we have tried latory opens onto the apse space, which contains the to explore how certain principles relating to the de- quire, raised up above the area of the altar. composition of the architectural mass, geometrical The view of the quire from the hall is filtered deformations of space, showed themselves in Gočár’s through a round archway in a theatrical set piece, with work as it moves from the brief “Cubist” mirage to the two smaller similarly shaped openings to the side, link- more concrete aspiration of “Rationalism”. ing the quire to the ambulatory via a colonnade. Two rows of parallel seats occupy the balcony space, protec- The approach to the form ted by a balustrade and opening onto the whole hall. In this regard, other questions arise – firstly regard- Every activity is graced with its own structure, ing how authentically this aesthetic approach is con- which characterises it figuratively: the raised hall, a sidered as experimental innovation at that time, and prism on a square base, protruding with respect to the secondarily the figurative conditioning provided on the fulcrum of the base it is positioned on. The semi-circu- one hand by cultural vanguardism and on the other lar apse is covered with a hemispherical dome linked to hand by the classical Bohemian tradition, as written by the hall and supported by a semi-circular colonnade, Vlastislav Hofman (1911). To create a visual order by ar- which rests on a tiered base. The bell tower is separate chitecture, Gočár needed a method based on a general from the rest, which rises vertically through the super- theory of architecture he was improving by his activ- imposing of basic geometric forms: “...Gočár became a ity. After defining the planning of tasks, he identified great architect the moment he learnt to link the poten- the items required to accomplish them. These actions tialities of the Late Art Noveau Style, which he made his were fulfilled by integrating the impulse of the cubist own as a pupil and then colleague of Jan Kotera, with creative patterns with the new needs of functionalism. the potentialities of modern building technology. In this That is why the creation of this “critical process” as a respect Gočár began to play the role of a Czech Auguste working method had assimilated theory and practice, Perret in the architecture of Prague in the late 1910’s... In by coordinating different factors: the rejection of form- a 1909 competition design Gočár wanted the glass cupola alism as a solution for architectural problems, with the of the council hall of the new wing of the Staré Mesto (Old purpose of avoiding any strict adherence to the thought Town) Town Hall, to hang on a ninety-metre-high steel of functionalism (Švacha 1991a). This is, in our judg- Journal of Architecture and Urbanism, 2017, 41(1): 9–21 15 ment, the most distinctive feature that characterized levels, placed in front of the reinforced concrete struc- Gočár’s contribution to the so-called “Czech Cubism”. ture, which is set back and hidden from direct view All of Gočár’s subsequent architectural output con- from the outside (Merlìtkova 2011). This heralds the sistently shows a “Cubist” aspiration, which was not disappearance of the architectural order and the struc- fully sated in the years preceding World War One. This tural division of the facade. At the same time the struc- extraordinarily fruitful first period was also particu- tural cantilevering onto the road of the attic area, which larly characterised by his first experiments and explor- houses the permanent displays of Wenke toys, presents ations in the neoclassical tradition such as the flight itself in a way which anticipates the taste for a compos- of steps leading to the Virgin Mary Church in Hradec ition of the facade free from any structural considera- Kralove (1909–1910) and the Wenke Department Store tions. A few years later, immediately following the end at Jaromer (1910–1911). of World War One, this approach would become part of The importance of the Wenke Department Store in the language of the whole European Modernist move- Jaromer (Hölz et al. 1994) lies in the unique composi- ment. The sole concession to the Viennese tional scheme with the transparency of the main front- is the placing of 10 fluted columns, set back from the age, in particular bearing in mind what an early work line of the facade and clothed in black ceramic tiles at this is, with the first designs dating back to March 1910. the uppermost level. The building’s ground plan adopts In these years Gočár was involved in the flight of the schema that Wenke wanted – to have a space which steps leading up to the Virgin Mary Church in Hradec would be suitable for display and as such maximum Kralove and the House of the Black Madonna in Prague visibility for the goods. as well as the plans for the Podoli Sanatorium in Prague Four corner pillars forming a classic “tetra-columns (Burkhardt 1978). This was a decisive period for ty- room”, with an enormous oval-spaced hollow provid- pological experimentation and the development of a ing a visual link between the two levels, classically figurative code, which would characterise his whole define the virtually square space of the main showroom career and the fortune of the Bohemian master. These on the ground floor. The gallery area is connected to were years when the Viennese architectural culture was the ground and first floors by a stairway placed in an making itself felt throughout the Austro-Hungarian intermediate position between the main showroom and Empire and Bohemia was no exception, particularly in the area behind (Fig. 3). The tension between the pared consequence of the exposure to such long-established down nature of the construction and the wealth of figures as Otto Wagner, Joseph Maria Olbrich and decoration are typical aspects of the project (Pistorius Josef Hoffmann (Lukeš 1998). And yet the architec- 1969; De Giovanni 1935; Burkhardt, Lamarova 1982). ture between the end of the nineteenth century and the The set back entrance, which links the street level beginning of the twentieth was focused on updating with the shop level via four steps, is protected by a can- and articulating the figurative legacy deriving from the tilevered canopy, embellished with a four branch can- nineteenth century manufacturing tradition, with the delabra suspended from metal chains. The load-bear- industrial revolution being seen as a sure guarantee of ing frame structure is left visible with a surface finish the possibility of progress (Janatková 2000 ). In those of dark panels, blocked by shiny metal frames on the same years, , with the Fagus Workshops verticals and concentric cornices along the beams and he built at Alfeld-an-der Leine in 1910–1911, was not levels of the deck. just building with a closer adherence to the technolo- To explain this critical attitude, one urban project, gical foundations, but was also reflecting on the ex- in particular, is especially important in Gočár’s ex- pressionist “transgression” with a radical break from perimental way of approaching the structure of form. tradition (Koula 1940). Relevant in this architectural Before being asked to draw up the plans for Hradec context of figurative inspiration was the emancipation Kralove (Fig. 7), Josef Gočár completed a minor job of technology, which at this point was running produc- which would subsequently turn out to be highly sig- tion and society itself. nificant in its small scale anticipation of a more gen- Gočár started surprisingly quickly to experiment in eral strategy for drawing up urban development plans, Jaromer with the relationship between the opaque and which would in turn have a major influence on future transparent surfaces of the facade, which had already town planning. The plan (Vanichý 1928) proposed a been alluded to in the 1907 project by the builder Masa dialectic relationship between the historic centre and (Wirth 1929). the periphery, an issue which had remained unresolved Gočár, taking up the theme, takes this transparency for many years after the demolition of the city walls. principle to extremes by placing a thin steel mesh to Divergent, even opposing, attitudes prioritised either support the entire infill glass of the facade on three safeguarding the ancient heart of the city or promoting 16 D. G. Chizzoniti. The structure of space: cubism and modernism. Figures and icons in Josef Gočár’s work

of perforations of the raised balustrade well above the handrail. As such it forms the prelude to the eman- cipation of modern architectural expression already precociously pioneered by Gočár in the first decade of the twentieth century. Without abandoning the func- tional requirements of the project, this minor work bends the bulky element in the ossified monument- ality of the Bohemian academic tradition through the non-materiality of empty walls, like subtle theatrical backdrops, which allow views of the city while hiding others, so as to restore a theatrical setting to the real image of the new city (Benešova et al. 2000). Rather than sticking with the orthodoxy and cer- tainties of contemporary Functionalism, as followed by the bourgeois Bohemian ideology at that time of growing industrialisation, Gočár preferred to look to the “classicist” home-grown tradition, so as to follow a more problematic path in grafting the principles of Fig. 7. J. Gočár, Urban project for the city of Hradec Králové, the extraordinary “Cubist” period (Švacha 1995), as 1927 well as to transpose and reinterpret them in the new Rationalist tendency following the end of the World the sustainable development of the modern city, while War One. supporting in both cases the maintenance of the his- One of the most important purposes of our re- toric centre’s morphology and typology common to search is to propose some new on Gočár’s many European cities with long-established structures architectural production in order to explain his effort and activities: the main square, the cathedral, the Town to enhance the emancipation of the Czech architec- Hall etc., notwithstanding the mutilation resulting ture from the contemporary academicism. This takes from the destruction of the period walls in place through the crystallization of the space not as the second half of the nineteenth century (Janatková the deformed surface of the casing, but rather as an 2000). In working on a new project various approaches alteration of the third dimension, achieved through thus come to the fore: on the one hand the need to in- the interposition of classic quotations. This formal ana- corporate the explosive growth of the post-industrial lysis is reflected in volume-height of the Warehouses city with the latent risk of an undifferentiated urban Wenke or in the classic hypertrophy of the project for fabric which would contaminate – whether by replace- Hradec Kralove. Yet, paradoxically the conditions for ment or completion – the city’s historic nexus; and on the recuperation of this figurative orientation were the other hand the need to exclude the logic and pro- more favourable once the false vision of reducing ar- grams exploiting the area of the historic heart, with chitectural space to an allusive kineticism of surfaces the equally evident danger of the centre segregation was abandoned and architectural plans could diversify (Kubícek, Wirth 1939). from painting and by reclaiming the third In the case of urban connections such as the flight dimension and a tectonic concreteness. This formal of steps leading to the Virgin Mary Church, Gočár’s analysis thus aims to demonstrate how the dynamic structure is conceived as a bridge through the city construction of material (which, in the most analytical walls. It is intersected by the arrangement of a series period of Cubist aesthetics, amounted to a simple defin- of architectural features: an arched portal at , ition of the superficial add-ons to the building, like a at first landing level rising from the large intermediate sort of stuck-on prism, with no penetration into the base, with a lamp-post at the centre of the arch, and architectural structure as a whole, except in a few rare a series of lesser features modulating the rest of the cases) blossoms again in all its expressive versatility in ascent. this second period. The arrangement is one of perforated diaphragms, in which the voids of the incisions of the ultra-thin The structure of the form walls in vertical cement are a negative of the metaphor- The recourse to a purist figurative repertory through ical representation of a classical order through the gi- the arrangement of basic geometric shapes even more gantic dilation of the arched portal and the sequence closely linked to the classical tradition in architecture Journal of Architecture and Urbanism, 2017, 41(1): 9–21 17 forces a reconsideration of the constructional aspect, jects. This is a theme particularly dear to Gočár as a which affects the entire structure and does not stop at means of giving monumental status to a public build- a building’s surface modelling. In this respect, whereas ing (Šlapeta 1991). The apparent ease with which he the categorical imperative of Functionalism in the re- organises the ground plan in the designs for the Bat’a construction years may have conditioned much of the cinema in 1926–1927 enables him to use this expedient architecture of the time and re-appropriated the ele- increasingly in all its expressive power for stairways mentary order of Euclidean geometrical space, Gočár’s which enclose the hall on the median transverse axis vision takes on board the full force of the Cubist sens- on the one hand, while on the other they circle the itivity and applies it with great dexterity to the new foyer area thereby freeing up the central space which is Modernist period (Lukeš, Setlík 2006). Consequently the hub of the composition (Teige 1930). This deform- the idea of the segmentation of space through the mul- ation using tiers has a corrosive effect on the geomet- tiple slippage of surfaces, rather than the deformation rical mass of the first plans for the competition for St of the composition into sloping lines or oblique plains Wenceslas Church in Prague (Fig. 8). Gočár, reacting or decomposition of the perspective, brings a whole positively to a suggestion from one of his pupils, Alois new vitality. Thus at the threshold of this new figur- Wachsman, in the final version exploits the sloping ative period there is a vigorous re-emergence of, for nature of the site by arranging a sequence of ascend- example, the arrangement of geometric blocks for the ing volumes in the central nave, thereby amplifying Gallery in Hradec Kralove. The placing of protruding the expanding effect of the interior space (Šlapeta 1987, elements form the line of the frontage and an entirely 2002). This is a recurrent theme in Gočár’s work and it Cubist diagonal deformation of volumes which, in is highly expressive, confirming how these typological a decreasing sequence and on multiple levels, takes inventions tend to reinforce certain figurative insights over the interior courtyards (Kratký 1990). Moreover, of the Cubist tradition transposed into this form of Gočár had already worked on a number of exhibition “Expressive Rationalism” (Švacha 2004). galleries, including the National Gallery in Prague, for Pavel Janak (1911), who went further in explor- which he won the design competition in 1923, and so ing the susceptibilities of material and the complex had built up a certain authoritativeness in the field. Cubist vision of space, argued in a famous article en- He was accordingly asked to come up with a series of titled “Prism and Pyramid” that emphasis of rhythms studies and preliminary drawings. perceived in depth and dramatisation of space should The entrance is configured as a stereometric glass come about first and foremost through composition prism rising the full height of the building and resting rather than ornamental exhibitionism (Moravánszky on the base which includes the entrance. Flanking the 2006). This act is a stimulus to a deeper and more co- large entrance hall is a stairway giving access to the up- herent reflection on the structure of the architectural per floors. The ground floor in the longer arm is taken up by a big display area for drawings and architecture, while the two side wings, front and back, are given over respectively to temporary exhibitions in one big room and to sculpture in three separate rooms. Gočár’s figurative approach, in this case, has been shorn of all avant-garde accretions and is perhaps one of his first explorations showing the full expressiveness of a pur- ist language. The project consists essentially of a linear structure broken up by a regular pattern of flat surfaces of glass, alternating with big areas of continuous and transparent background reaching full height with large opaque stretches. Although there are only few designs in the archives at the National Museum of Technology in Prague, they all show very clearly how Gočár went from a figurative exploration within the Cubist avant-garde to a broader Rationalist language, but without ossifying in Functionalism, which was a significant constant in much of the architecture of the period. The plastic “alteration” of the architectural mass, Fig. 8. J. Gočár, Church of Saint Wenceslas in Prague, Vršovice, through the device of tiers, turns up in different pro- 1928–1929 18 D. G. Chizzoniti. The structure of space: cubism and modernism. Figures and icons in Josef Gočár’s work

space (Janak 1911). This effort regarding the express- iveness of the material led Cubist works to stop at the “dynamics of the shape”. This limit consequently in- fluenced architectural criticism, which, while agreeing with the expressive intent, suspended its judgement on how such significant works were not able to penetrate into the European architectural context, despite being “innovative and original”. Since Gočár had worked through the ideological im- petus of the first Cubist phase (Lahoda 2010), a more meaningful interpretation is still needed for his nu- merous attempts – some of which were more successful than others – to transform the body of the building and its static stereometry. So the continuity of approach in Gočár’s work between the second decade of the twen- tieth century and the period after the First World War, irrespective of its figurative expression, turns out to be stylistically apart but still comparable in terms of ty- pological experimentation (Lahoda 1992). It was stated earlier that one of the purposes of this examination of Gočár’s work was to make a different contribution to official architectural histories, through direct invest- igation of the authors’ materials and above all to make empirical reconstructions of the development of the design concept. However some clarification is called for. In studying the guiding principles of Cubism’s analyt- ical phase we attempted to ascertain if this predisposi- tion to figurative manipulation did not also condition Fig. 9. J. Gočár, Church of Saint Wenceslas in Prague, Vršovice, the subsequent period not just in the tendency to adopt 1928–1929, re-drawing of ground floor plan and longitudinal a figurative code “derived by analogy” or transferred section through linear results, but also the adoption of certain procedures, attitudes and proposals that combined in constructing a new architectural foundation. At the same time the necessity of cultural reorganisation of architectural practice was sanctioned by the polit- ical situation, with the national autonomy the young Czechoslovak Republic had finally won from the dec- adent Austro-Hungarian Empire (Švestka, Vlček 2006). The prototypes and the reproductions consistently feature analytical re-drawings, in ground plan and section (Fig. 9), reconstructions of frontages and three dimensional models, useful for surveying a number of invariables in the design process. These reproduc- tions were made in order to capture some figurative constants, where the starting point would appear to be genuinely “Cubist”, despite the renunciation of the formal rhetoric typically displayed by that experience (Fig. 10). The deformation of corners, variously re-elab- orated in the villas of the Baba quarter in Prague’s Dejvice district, erodes the idea of the geometric prism by either interposing hollow components which are geometrically defined by discreet blocks and arranged as open spaces and terraces, as in the case of the Villa Fig. 10. J. Gočár, Villa Sochor at Dvůr Kralové, 1928–1931 Journal of Architecture and Urbanism, 2017, 41(1): 9–21 19

Kitlica 1932–1933 (Fig. 11); or through the repeated su- perimposition of horizontally “sliding” planes to pro- duce protrusions and hollows with respect to the facade line and to give the colonnades and upper level loggias, as in the case of the Villa Glucklich 1933 (Templ 1999). This erosion of space had already been successfully pi- loted with its breaking up of geometrical rigour of Villa Strnad in the Bubenec residential district in 1925–1926, by dilating the cantilever effect of the block on top of the two floors below, with their windows going full height, and a winter garden placed therein (Fig. 5). If on the one hand Gočár is scrupulous in emancipating the typology of the urban villa at a time when this was a widespread focus throughout European architecture, on the other he continues his experiments with public buildings (Figs 12–13) especially churches, in a style of

Fig. 13. J. Gočár, Grandhotel in Pardubice, 1927–1932

Cubism elevated to disturb the conventional architec- tural structure of these types of building. Several years on, this tendency towards planimet- ric “distortion” was to influence the designs for the Saint Wenceslas Church in Prague, on a completely free and unrestricted site. This theme allowed Gočár in his explorations to continue experimenting with his adopted figurative style so that he was able to come up with genuinely innovative typologies, the legacy of that same Cubist dynamism which inspired him so often Fig. 11. J. Gočár, Villa Kytlica in the Baba district, 1932–1933 (Hilmera 1999).

Conclusions The study of these projects and their successive evol- ution aimed to take account of the development of Gočár’s ideas. Unlike many of his colleagues, Gočár had a prodigious output in terms of actual projects and rather less in terms of publicising his ideas. We are not aware of any genuinely theoretical writing on architecture from him, apart from the occasional de- scription focused on methodological approaches to specific projects in progress. This paper aims to explore the critical dimen- sions of a practice that was in fact antecedent to a pre- cursor of non-conventional approach to the European Functionalism. For Gočár, this attitude departs from those that followed modernism like an idea of uncon- scious and impulsive reproduction of needs of the new patterns of use. This process of knowledge does not merely concern the functional and utilitarian aspects. The expectations of the practice of architecture also in- Fig. 12. J. Gočár, Railway-workers building in Hradec Králové, 1933–1934 volve general interests in its ethical component and its 20 D. G. Chizzoniti. The structure of space: cubism and modernism. Figures and icons in Josef Gočár’s work

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